About CBC News

Information about CBC News, how we operate and how to contact us.

CBC News · Posted: Jan 31, 2012 4:14 PM ET | Last Updated: December 6

WHO WE ARE

Founded in 1941, CBC News is Canada's publicly owned news and information service. We are rooted in every region of the country and report on Canada and the world to provide a Canadian perspective on news and current affairs.

CBC News is committed to accurately reflecting the range of experiences and points of view of all citizens. All Canadians, of whatever origins, perspectives and beliefs, should feel that our news and current affairs coverage is relevant to them and lives up to our principles.

We have a special responsibility to reflect regional and cultural diversity, as well as fostering respect and understanding across regions.

In a world where the line of what constitutes journalism appears to be increasingly blurred, CBC/Radio-Canada holds itself to the highest standards of journalistic practices.

All employees of CBC News, as well as the content they create, must respect the principles of accuracy, fairness, balance, impartiality and integrity as expressed through the Journalistic Standards and Practices.

We are aware of the impact of our work and are honest with our audiences. We do not hesitate to correct any mistake when necessary nor to follow up a story when a situation changes significantly. We do not plagiarize.

You can find links to report a correction or typo at the bottom of any CBC News story.

The office of the ombudsman reviews our practices against the standards set out in our Journalistic Standards and Practices. We openly provide the public with the means to judge and hold us to account by sharing with it how we measure the quality and standards of our journalism.

If you wish to make a complaint or raise a concern regarding News or Current Affairs content, you may write to or email our independent ombudsman, who is responsible for ensuring compliance to the CBC/Radio-Canada Journalistic Standards and Practices.

CBC News is a member of the Trust Project, an international consortium of news organizations collaborating to use transparency as a way to educate readers and promote news that lives up to fairness and accuracy.

The Trust Project is developing tools that help users differentiate high-quality news online. A system of 'trust Indicators' are designed to tell audiences and news distribution platforms that the editorial is ethically produced, accurate news.

Indicators include:

Publishing best practices

Publishing author bylines and author information

Clearly labelling content, for example to distinguish between opinion and analysis

CBC News uses labels as signals to help readers identify the status of different kinds of stories. Labels are used to flag stories that are breaking news or contain live elements such as video.

CBC News also uses labels to distinguish clearly between analysis and opinion.

Analysis — Here, reporters may make observations and draw conclusions based on facts as well as their own experience and expertise.

Opinion — On an exceptional basis, we may choose to appoint certain journalists as columnists. They have licence to express their opinions. To protect the integrity of CBC's journalism, we will restrict the role of such columnists to opinion and commentary. Their work will be clearly identified as opinion.

When presenting content where a single opinion or point of view is featured, we ensure that a diversity of perspective is provided across a network or platform and in an appropriate time frame.

CBC News stories based on original reporting carry reporter bylines, which include information about the author such as expertise, location, biographical and contact information. Bylines link to author pages that include other articles by the writer.

Some CBC News stories are combined from a variety of sources, including one or more news agencies and CBC News staff. They are written and edited by CBC News but carry a generic CBC News byline.

CBC News also publishes stories from different news agencies, including The Canadian Press, The Associated Press and Reuters. These stories may be edited by CBC News to add information or change grammar and spelling to our style. They are published under agency bylines, indicating when significant material has been added by CBC News.

The CBC News contacts page has details on how to reach the CBC newsrooms across Canada, contact a CBC News personality, pitch an idea or give feedback on something you heard over the air or read on our website.